Professors Caution Against Net Neutrality Rule Change

As the Federal Communications Commission prepares to vote on a proposal to dismantle current network neutrality rules, professors at Harvard Business School and the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences cautioned against several aspects of the proposal. 

James H. Waldo, a computer science professor and the chief technology officer at SEAS, explained that arguments against net neutrality have evolved since the concept's inception. “It started off with the idea that the Internet providers like Comcast and Verizon could do differential pricing based on the content of the package that was being delivered, the idea being that things like video took a lot more bandwidth than other forms of Internet traffic,” Waldo said. However, Waldo said this rationale has since largely morphed into a strategy for the economic benefit of Internet service providers. “What this has now become is an attempt by the Internet service providers to be able to charge particular customers... different prices based on who are at the ends of the line,” he said.